Former Hab calls out his old team for stymieing his performance.

It has been quite the turnaround for Devante Smith-Pelly since being traded.

The 23-year old forward was traded by the Montreal Canadiens to the New Jersey Devils on Feb. 29 after a disappointing stint with the Blue-Blanc-Rouge.

Since the trade, Smith-Pelly has a point in six of his last seven games and has nine points since the deal was struck. In comparison, Smith-Pelly managed only 12 points in 46 games with the Habs in 2015-16. He was utilized as nothing more than a bottom-six forward in Montreal, and has flourished in an offensive role alongside Devils' center Adam Henrique.

“It works with us,” Smith-Pelly said of playing with Adam Henrique (quotes have been translated). “Adam is a smart player who’s good with the puck, and I play 15, 16 or 17 minutes per game. In my first game with the Devils, I played almost 19 minutes. I have a bigger role here."

Smith-Pelly took a parting shot at his former team, stating that he was under-utilized with the Canadiens.

“It’s hard to improve when you’re playing just 10 minutes per game,” said Smith-Pelly, per LaPresse. There’s a big difference between my role with the Devils and my role with the Canadiens.”

This trade has proven to be a steal for the Devils, as the player he was traded for has been underwhelming thus far. That player is Stefan Matteau, who has only one assist and a minus-3 rating while averaging 10:25 of ice time in six games with the Canadiens.

Apparently the Canadiens didn't know what they had on their hands until it was too late.

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Images Courtesy of Keystone Press